Man City accelerate talks for £85m Rodri successor - and could sign Enzo Fernandez as well

Manchester City are closing in on the signing of Lille star Ayyoub Bouaddi as a replacement for Rodri, but haven't ruled out moving for Enzo Fernandez as well.

City have agreed to sell Rodri to Barcelona for around £65million and have moved fast to replace the 2024 Ballon d'Or winner. Barca's interest in the Spain captain has been established for some time, with an opening £38.5m bid rejected earlier this month, so City have been planning ahead.

Bouaddi is one of the most exciting young players in Europe and is valued at £85m by Lille. The 18-year-old midfielder started all five of Morocco's game at this summer's World Cup and already has 88 appearances under his belt for Lille.

City have reached advanced talks with the French side for Bouaddi, according to BBC Sport , who report that manager Enzo Maresca still retains a 'strong interest' in Chelsea's Fernandez. Maresca coached the Argentina international during his spell at Stamford Bridge and wants a reunion at City.

Fernandez joined Chelsea from Benfica in February 2023 for £107m and is valued at over £120m by the Blues now. He was booed by a section of Chelsea fans after coming on as a substitute in their 3-1 pre-season friendly win over Real Sociedad on the weekend and faces an uncertain future.

The 25-year-old had been keen to join Real Madrid in the summer transfer window and was suspended by ex-manager Liam Rosenior for his public flirtation with the Spanish giants. Meanwhile his agent, Javier Pastore, has been agitating for a pay rise for his client.

City missed the chance to trigger the £120m release clause in his contract, with the deadline of 5pm on Friday passing. Despite splashing out £116m for Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest earlier this summer, they are in need of reinforcements in central midfield.

Rodri's departure is a hugely significant one for Maresca, who is also set to lose Tijjani Reijnders to Saudi Arabian side Al Qadsiah for a fee of £51m. Anderson started alongside Matteo Kovacic in the Community Shield on Sunday, where Arsenal's 3-0 win underlined the improvement that's needed for City.

Nico Gonzalez and Rico Lewis were used off the bench by Maresca, who is desperate for further reinforcements in the middle of the pitch. The transfer window remains open until September 1, with the money earned from the sales of Rodri and Reijnders able to offset the potential signings of Bouaddi and Fernandez.

Maresca insisted on Sunday that the defeat by Arsenal in Cardiff would not change anything. "We knew already before the game that the things that we need to do, it is not because we lost the game or even if we were winning the game, we [would not think in a] different way," he said post-match.

"We are quite clear about what we need to do.